


Learn to Love

by theoneandonlywuluf



Category: Stardew Valley (Video Game)
Genre: Abuse, F/M, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Physical Abuse, Self-Indulgent, Violence, just be careful if abuse or violence or anything like that triggers you, kind of pregame, no idea how to tag this, theres like throwing things and destruction of property
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-16
Updated: 2020-10-27
Packaged: 2021-03-08 18:00:17
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,984
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27040891
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/theoneandonlywuluf/pseuds/theoneandonlywuluf
Summary: Celia Ferly had lived a rather normal life. She grew up in the suburbs with occasional trips to the countryside to visit her grandfather, she had a stable job working for Joja Co., and she had a loving boyfriend. Her boyfriend could get a little temperamental sometimes, but she was happy with him for the most part.It's when she found a dog that her mind began to change as she opens an envelope gifted to her many years ago.(All of this is very subject to change, I just want to share my efforts and maybe get some constructive criticism. BEWARE THE TAGS! There is "relatively" mild abuse as accurately portrayed as I possibly can, considering I've never been in a relationship, nor an abusive one (thankfully.) Just, be careful.)
Relationships: Original Character(s)/Original Character(s)
Kudos: 1





	1. Dog

**Author's Note:**

> Why hello there! Welcome to my first (possibly poorly written) post on this site! Yaaay... thank you for being here, you're appreciated! This was probably tagged incorrectly and I'm the wrong person to ask for the ins and outs of Ao3, but I'm certainly excited to start sharing here. Everyone's so welcoming and nice, from all I've seen!
> 
> Now, getting into this, I apologize for any (of the probably many) inaccuracies. There was not much research put into this work, was too excited to write. I also apologize if I make anyone upset or uncomfortable. I do much better with lists than the tagging system right now so as of right now, my story contains:
> 
> \- Abusive relationships  
> \- Physical abuse  
> \- Violence (Throwing of things, kicking of dogs)  
> \- Angst?  
> \- Plot holes  
> \- possibly swearing, I know I curse a lot and I tried to check but might have missed some.
> 
> And if you notice anything else, please please PLEASE tell me. Okay, I'll shut up for now. Hope you enjoy!

A young woman with brown locks walked home from work, her dress swaying in the night breeze. She passed alleyways, listening to the sounds around her. She paused when she heard whining as she passed one. She listened for it again. She heard it coming from the dark. She turned on the flashlight on her phone, shining it into the darkness. Curled up in a pile of trash, there was a small puppy. It looked hungry. She rushed over to the furry creature, searching through her bag as she went. She found what she was looking for, a jerky stick leftover from lunch, and unwrapped it. She held the dried meat out to the dog, who took it eagerly and gobbled it down. “Hey there, little guy. Where’s your home?” She reached out to pet it. It sniffed her and let her comb her fingers through its fur. She didn’t find a collar. There was a vets office down the street that she could take this dog to, it would be closing soon, but if she hurried she could make it. She reached down and picked the puppy up, carrying it quickly to the office.   
  


She rushed in the doors. She got there just in time. She breathed out a “Hi” to the desk lady. “Name?” The lady behind the desk asked. “Celia Ferly, I don’t have an appointment, but I found this hungry little guy. Can you check this pup out?” She hoped that they could. “Well you got here just before closing, so I suppose I don’t see why not. Let me talk to Dr. Simecheck.” And with that desk lady was gone. Celia flopped down in a chair and set the dog down. It went exploring, sniffing everything down. There was no one else here, so she didn’t think that it was doing any harm. She stood and picked it back up when she heard two sets of footsteps. “Awww! What a cute puppy!” The woman, presumably Dr. Simecheck, who desk lady brought back gushed. “Let’s see where you belong and how you’re doing hm? Follow me.” Dr. Symmecheck brought them back as Celia nodded her thanks to the desk lady. 

After a short check-up, they found that the dog was a she, healthy, and unchipped. Meaning, if Celia didn’t take the dog, it would have to go to the shelters. They fed the dog some and then it was time for Celia to leave. She thanked the ladies at the office and walked home, carrying the puppy who could be hers soon. She decided she’d stop at the pet store tomorrow. Then the thought of her boyfriend crossed her mind. What would he think? How would she explain why she was home late? Would he be mad? She hadn’t asked him about a dog yet. She felt more and more anxious as she got closer to her apartment. Her apartment was animal-friendly, which removed some stress, but she was more worried about her boyfriend. She unlocked and opened the door to her apartment. She made sure to keep the dog hidden, putting her in the bathroom and shutting the door silently.

Her boyfriend was there waiting for her in the kitchen. “Welcome home Celia. I made dinner!” He called gently from the kitchen. Celia smiled. She liked it when he did nice things like that. She walked to the kitchen and softly thanked him. “You didn’t have to do that Darren. Thank you.” They ate dinner together, making quiet small-talk. A question she had expected came up not too far into dinner. “Why were you home late?” Darren asked her. She scrambled for an answer. “I-I got caught up doing things at work, and took my time a little more o-on the walk home.” She stammered. Darren seemed a little skeptical like he didn’t quite believe her. He would be watching for any wrong move from her. They continued to eat and talk. “There’s something I’d like to ask you…” She mumbled, suddenly unsure of herself. Darren hummed in response and nodded for her to ask away. “W-Well, I was wondering… if we--uh, I... could get a dog?” She asked hesitantly. “I saw this super cute blue merle border collie puppy online and she was just the sweetest thing, I want her so bad…” Celia hoped Darren would say yes. That would make things so much easier. Darren frowned. “Celia, you know I love you dear, but who’s going to take care of it? I can’t take care of a dog, and neither can you. That’s a silly question.” Darren’s tone was like one used for a misbehaving child. “W-Well, I thought I-” Darren gave her a borderline angry look. “It’s a silly question. You are not getting a dog.” He stated firmly. Celia looked down. It was at the most inconvenient moment that a puppy came in and licked her legs. She didn’t close the door all the way. Oh no.

Celia’s stomach sank to her feet. Darren had seen the dog. “You didn’t ask me before you got the dog?” His voice was louder than normal. “I’m the reason you aren’t out on the streets right now. I’m the reason you’re happy. You’d be begging for a penny on the streets if it weren’t for me.” Celia stood, believing Darren even though she was the one who paid for the apartment and had a better job. She was shaking, afraid. It had been so good for so long. She thought he was better. He was doing better. “D-Darren I can take care of her! I can make my own decisions.” Celia tried to argue. “No, you can’t make a decision like this! You’ll end up hurting yourself or dying or god knows what else.” Darren seems rational to her. Celia started to doubt herself. “Darren, please-- she was-- I was-- this poor dog was out on the streets, starving! You-- you know I can’t-- don’t-- you know I love animals and nature too much to let a dog starve!” She pleaded desperately.

“It can go to the shelters. It won’t starve there, and someone will take care of it since we can’t.” Darren’s tone was gradually getting more annoyed and angry the more she tried to argue. “Darren, you know how long some dogs are left there! We can’t-- you can’t-- we can’t do that to her!” She didn’t know why she was still arguing. She had just found this dog. She guessed that it was just her love for animals. “Celia, we are taking this dog back to the shelters tomorrow! Don’t you want me to be happy? Did you once think about how I’d feel?” Darren had a point. She didn’t think very hard about it. She guiltily looked down at her feet, saying nothing. That guilty quickly turned to fear as the dog, her dog, went up to sniff Darren. Darren’s leg snapped out like he barely thought about it. He just kicked her dog without even thinking about it. Celia’s heart broke. She scrambled to check to make sure her pup was okay. Before she even got two steps closer, there was an empty, dirty plate flying towards her. She squeaked, protecting her head. Tears started to run down her face.

Darren wouldn’t calm down. He threw things at her for a good minute while she cried before he switched to destroying the living room. While Darren was busy throwing lamps and smashing candles, Celia knelt down in the broken glass and picked up her dog carefully. Her boyfriend destroying things was so loud. She needed to get her dog somewhere safe. She carried her dog back to the bathroom, closing the door and locking it. She ignored the angry Darren pounding angrily on the door, demanding to be let in. “It’ll be okay… we’ll be okay…” She whispered to her dog. She wasn’t sure it would be, but she didn’t think Darren could get in. He was trying, but she didn’t think he’d be able to get past the sturdy wood. Then the pounding stopped. She thought she’d be okay. She was safe. It had been a minute or two. Her dog seemed to be recovering, Celia guessed Darren must not have kicked her hard enough to break any of her little puppy bones, thank god. She thought she was safe. And then she heard the lock click. She was quick to try to keep the door held shut, but Darren was stronger as he barged in. He was screaming at her from the doorway.

She formulated an escape plan. She had to get herself and her dog past Darren and out of the apartment. She couldn’t stay here. Darren would kill her dog and maybe her. She cradled her border collie puppy in her arms. She barely heard her boyfriend yelling anymore as she looked for an opening to run. She mustered up the courage to push past him. She moved quickly and suddenly to get by him. He barely missed her as he tried to grab her. She made it out the door, running down her apartment hall and down the stairs. She had to get as far as possible as fast as possible. She didn’t dare look behind her. She opened the door to the second floor and chose a door to knock on. She prayed that they would answer. A middle-aged woman answered the door. “H-Hello, I’m so sorry for bothering you, I need your help.” She was panting and speaking hurriedly, there were still tears running down her cheeks. “M-My boyfriend is super mad at me, I brought this dog home without asking him first, a-and he yelled and threw things at me and he destroyed the living room, I don’t know where to go! Can I please stay here? Just for a night?” The woman’s expression was unreadable as she started to close the door. “N-no, wait! Please, please! I-I’ll work-- I’ll pay, whatever you want, just please, please don’t make me go find him.” The door shut in her face.

Despair clouded her mind. She started to think about how crazy she sounded. Joja would be closed by now. She had nowhere to go but home. So she walked back up the stairs. She walked back down the hall. She knocked on the locked door to the apartment. “Realize where you’d be without me?” She nodded. He wasn’t yelling anymore, though his anger was stewing. It would be all night tonight and probably most of tomorrow. He let her back inside, thankfully not making her leave her dog outside the apartment. “You’re lucky I love you. What if I hadn’t been here to let you in? What if your boyfriend hadn’t loved you enough to let you keep the dog until tomorrow? You’d be in a much worse position than you would be now, wouldn’t you?” She said nothing in response. She was still shaken and scared that one wrong move would make him explode again. She didn’t want to sleep in the same bed as him.

“I’m gonna…” Her voice was nearly inaudible. She cleared her throat and tried again. “I wanna-- can I stay in the bathroom with the dog tonight?” She was scared that might set him off. “Fine,” Darren grumbled with an annoyed sigh. She sighed quietly in relief. First, though, she had to clean up the remnants of Darren’s anger while he got ready for bed. She set her dog in the bathroom and closed the door, checking to make sure it was closed all the way. Celia spent an hour or so cleaning, she assumed Darren had already gone to bed. She admired her efforts, the apartment put back together. The picture of her and her grandpa that had miraculously managed to stay intact rested back on the table. She felt tears choke her throat. She struggled not to cry, her head was already pounding from crying earlier, she didn’t want to make it worse. She thought about the envelope her grandpa had given her just days before he passed, tucked securely in her work desk at Joja after Darren had snooped and almost opened it. It was incredibly special to her, something that even holding made her feel closer to her grandfather.

Celia sighed, glancing at the clock that displayed that it was nearing ten o’clock. She had to be up and leaving for work well before Darren got up, meaning she had to leave for work at five in the morning. She didn’t want him to stop her from leaving as he sometimes did. She slipped into the bathroom, smiling at the sleeping form of her dog. She took a few towels out of the cabinet they kept them in. She lined her bathtub with one, used one as a blanket, and used the last one as a pillow. She flipped off the lights, allowing the nightlight to guide her. She curled up awkwardly in the tub, she knew she was going to feel that when she woke up, but she felt safer behind the locked door with her dog near her. She needed a name for her pup. She thought about the patterns on her coat and the first thing that sprang to mind was Silver. Celia thought it suited her. Her coat was like a silver coin, been through some hardships, but strong and pretty nonetheless. “Silver…” She whispered into the dark. “Silver.” She whispered again. Silver didn’t know her name yet, but when she did, Celia would give her lots of love and attention. She knew she’d be doing so anyway, but she would do it even more when Silver knew she was Silver.

She fell in and out of sleep that night. Whenever she woke up, she’d reach her hand over the side of the tub and whisper for Silver to come to touch her hand. She never did, but her ears perked up when Celia said it in the latter half of the night. Celia would watch her by the soft glow of the nightlight until she went fully back to sleep. It was around her tenth time waking up that she ventured into the kitchen to check the time. Four forty-five A.M. Lovely. Celia slipped into her and Darren’s shared room, being very mindful of the creaky places as she grabbed a duffel bag and clean clothes. She headed back into the bathroom and changed quickly, brushing her hair and leaving it down, just barely reaching her shoulders with her bangs swept to the side. She beckoned Silver into the duffel, eventually having to pick her up and plop her inside. Celia padded the inside of the bag with the towels she slept with last night around Silver and zipped the bag loosely around the dog. Silver's head was sticking out, Celia had made sure to leave enough room for her to move a little and look around too. Her setup seemed to work pretty well. She snagged an apple from the kitchen, put her keys to the apartment in her pocket, and left. She had Silver with her so Darren couldn’t take her back to the shelters.   
  
She walked to work in the mostly dark, taking her time and grabbing a pastry from her favorite animal-friendly bakery. She spent a little time talking with the tired baker who owned the store. They had just pulled the scones from the oven. Celia had explained to them why she had the dog with her when they asked. They seemed like they were thinking deeply when she had finished telling them the events of last night. “Have you considered leaving? Darren doesn’t seem to be treating you like you deserve. I remember you coming in here with bruises and cuts before and telling me that your boyfriend got mad over something smaller than bringing a stray puppy home.” Normally, Celia would’ve brushed it off. She might have told them that they were being silly, that Darren only did this because he loved her and that it was her fault for making him angry. Now she thought about it. She continued to think about it as she bid them goodbye and finished her walk to work. Celia walked calmly through the morning to Joja, her thoughts drifting from Darren to Silver, from Silver to her parents, from her parents to her grandpa. Thoughts of Grandpa made a lump in her throat. She missed him dearly. Her mind drifted to that envelope once again, itching to open it. Grandpa had told her there would come a time she would feel crushed by the burdens of modern life, that her bright spirit would fade and before a growing emptiness. When that happened, she would be ready for his gift. She could still remember those words very well. Her mind was assaulted by memories of Grandpa on the farm. Her eyes grew wet with tears.

She missed Grandpa. She tried not to think about him for a while. For now, she arrived at work and had to get in and get started. She walked through the revolving doors and made her way to her cubicle, watching the light on the wall turn from a red ‘Rest’ to a green and blinking ‘Work’ as she set Silver in her duffel on the floor and sat down. She got to typing, not really thinking about the emails she was writing, the numbers she was crunching, or the spreadsheets she was making. It was the most boring thing she’d ever done. She tried not to let herself think about how boring this job was. Silver was positioned underneath her desk by her feet. She was sleeping. Celia didn’t understand how she could sleep all night and still sleep right now. She felt herself start drifting a few hours into working. She was falling asleep. She might have stopped herself if she wasn’t too tired to care. She sank into her desk chair, thankful that at least it wasn’t plastic as she drifted off to sleep.

Celia was happy no one had woken her up as she slowly woke back up. Silver was awake and licking her legs. She felt tired and empty. When she remembered that she’d have to take Silver home and hope that Darren didn’t get as mad as he did last night, dread joined those feelings. She was ready for Grandpa’s envelope. She hoped she could feel close to him again after she opened this envelope. She threw open the drawer that held the envelope, tucked safely away in the back behind some papers. She grabbed it, inspecting it carefully and flipping it over and back. She hesitated to pull the purple wax seal open and open the envelope, but she wasn’t sure what was stopping her. She opened it carefully, pulling the contents out of it. She opened what looked like a note first.

_ Dear Celia, _

_ If you’re reading this, you must be in dire need of a change. _

_ The same thing happened to me, long ago. I lost sight of what mattered most in life… real connections with other people and nature. So I dropped everything and moved to the place I truly belong. _

_ I’ve enclosed the deed to that place... My pride and joy: Great Field Farm. It’s located in Stardew Valley, on the southern coast. It’s the perfect place to start your new life. _

_ This was my most precious gift of all, and now it’s yours. I know you’ll honor the family name, my dear. Good luck. _

_ Love, Grandpa _

_ P.S. If Lewis is still alive say hi to the old guy for me, will ya? _

Celia didn’t know when she started crying, but she did. She found the titles and deeds and all the documents to Great Field Farm next. And after that, she was leaving. She grabbed Silver’s duffel and the envelope full of papers and was gone. Off to her boss. She felt powerful, frantic, excited. She didn’t pause to think about what she was doing, she just did. “I quit.” She said, staring into her boss’s face. Her eyes had dried on the trip across the building. “No two weeks’ notice. I don’t care about your policies, I have a bus ticket to purchase and a bag to pack.” She turned and swiftly walked down to the exit of the building. She jogged back to her apartment, careful not to jostle Silver too much. Speaking of her, Silver was yipping excitedly. She must sense the nerves and excitement and happiness and fear and dread radiating off of Celia. She rushed into her apartment. Darren wasn’t home yet, but he would be in half an hour. Celia couldn’t believe it was already four-thirty in the afternoon. She set Silver down and unzipped the duffel, letting the dog out of the bag. She couldn’t care less at the moment if Darren was mad. She was going to Stardew Valley, a four-hour drive from her city, Darren’s anger didn’t matter to her at that moment. What mattered was buying herself a bus ticket, packing, feeding Silver jerky sticks. She found Darren’s laptop, opening it and pulling up a private search window. She found the soonest ticket to Stardew Valley she could find, and that was tomorrow at seven A.M. She bought it, taking the duffel from earlier and tossing the towels out of it, she couldn’t care less about where they landed. Her mind was a mess and so was she as she threw all the belongings she cared to take with her into the duffel. She packed some food in there as well. She was packed. Five minutes until Darren got home. She grabbed Silver a bunch of jerky sticks for dinner and as an apology for not feeding her breakfast or getting her real dog food. She unwrapped one and fed it to her black, white, and silver dog.

“We’re gonna be great friends, I can tell! You must’ve been hungry. Sorry I didn’t grab you breakfast before we left this morning. I wanted to leave before Darren got up. He doesn’t like you very much, though I don’t know why.” Celia unwrapped another one. “How could anyone not want a cute puppy-like you in the house? You’re so pretty…” She scratched behind Silver’s ears while her dog ate the jerky stick. “Celia!” She turned to look at Darren, apparently, he’d been standing there. “Uh...Yes?” She questioned, nervously. Her mind recalled what the baker had said. Had she considered leaving? No. She hadn’t. She hadn’t even thought about it before she opened Grandpa’s letter. She hadn’t thought about it afterward either. She just knew she needed to leave and she knew immediately that was what she wanted. “What are you doing home so early? You aren’t supposed to be here for two more hours. And why did you bring that dog back? I thought you took it to the shelters.” Darren didn’t sound mad, just annoyed. “I-- well, I thought-- brought Silver back because I want to... keep her. She just-- she doesn’t deserve to sit in the shelters forever.” She only answered the second question, making a point to avoid his eyes when she answered it. She couldn’t answer the first question. She couldn’t tell him she quit her job. Only now her mind caught up with what she was doing. She had quit her job, bought a bus ticket, and packed without talking to Darren about it first. Darren would surely flip if she told him about her moving to the farm. He’d probably hate everything about life on the farm.

“Are you not gonna answer why you’re home early?” Darren questioned, there was that misbehaving child tone again. This couldn’t end well. She glanced down at the floor in guilt and nervousness. Only now did she realize how crazy she was. She opened a letter her grandfather had left to her ten some odd years ago and found the papers and documents to a large slice of land she hadn’t been to in years. She didn’t check if these papers were in her legal possession. If Great Field Farm was even hers legally. She quit her job, she now had no plan to fall back on if this whole moving thing didn’t work out, not to mention Darren didn’t have his own apartment anymore and he couldn’t pay the rent for their current one, his job wasn’t good enough for that. Not enough. She always gave him a better place to stay as a thank you to him, an ‘I love you’. It was the least she could do to show him how grateful she was that he cared about her. She bought a bus ticket, one non-refundable bus ticket, she wasn’t thinking about Darren coming with her. She shook her head suddenly, walking into the shared bedroom where Darren’s laptop was still open on that tab. She guessed a lot of people must be getting bus tickets to Zuzu city, around half-way to Stardew Valley, because no one but her had bought a ticket for the whole way there, but every other seat on the bus was filled. She supposed there must be an event or something. Since every other ticket was purchased, the next time there would be a bus to Stardew Valley wouldn’t be for two weeks. Darren had followed her and was peering over her shoulder at the laptop.

“Why did you buy a bus ticket to Stardew Valley? Celia, what are you not telling me?” Darren sounded hurt. She didn’t want him to hurt. “I...I own my grandfather's farm now. The letter you tried to open that I keep at work? That was from him. It has the documents and deeds to the farm. I wasn’t thinking and I--I quit my job and bought a ticket. I need to go, Darren. I have to. I’ve already bought the ticket and I can’t cancel it and get the money back.” She had a sudden thought. She could afford to pay for the apartment for another month, though she was counting on her next paycheck to help. She checked her bank account. She could afford to bring five hundred G with her. “Honey, you can’t go. I need you here! What if the bus breaks down? What if…” He trailed off. She turned around and cautiously wrapped her arms around him. “I have enough money to keep the apartment for another month. In two weeks, you can use the money you’ve been saving up to come to the farm and stay there with me, but for now, I have to go alone.” She held him in a way he had never done for her. “I promise, we’ll be together again soon, and I’m not leaving until tomorrow. Don’t worry.” Her voice was barely above a whisper. They stayed like that a moment more before Darren pulled back. 

Their day after that was somewhat calm. They had a small argument over Silver yet again, not as explosive as last night’s, which was still stewing in Celia’s mind, but an argument no less. It had almost ended in Darren’s favor, but she managed to stand her ground. She didn’t know what was going on with her recently. She supposed Silver brought out a more stubborn, confident side of her. They ate dinner, Celia fed Silver and shut her in the bathroom yet again. Celia was excited, nervous, scared, and happy all at once as she thought about the bus trip tomorrow. She’d be taking Silver with her and no one could stop her.

Or so she thought. She left before Darren got up, Silver in tow, and arrived at the bus stop fifteen minutes before the bus would arrive. She had checked three times while she waited to make sure she had everything. Then the bus arrived. The bus driver told her they didn’t allow animals that weren’t service animals on the bus. She was now pleading with the bus driver to make an exception just this once. She refused. Celia was heartbroken. She had to leave, but Silver couldn’t come with her. She gave Silver a great big hug, holding her tight and running her fingers through her fur. “I’m sorry… I’m so sorry… I already love you so much…” She whispered. Then she set the dog that would forever be hers in her heart down and said goodbye. She climbed into the bus, Silver trying to follow her. “No… I’m sorry, but you can’t come with me.” She sat her down at the bus stop and watched as the doors closed, Silver yipping at her. She found her seat and sat down, watching through the window as the bus drove away. She sighed sadly, already longing for the dog to be there with her. She closed her eyes and tried not to think about it. Before she knew it, she had fallen asleep.


	2. update

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> just an update, don't get your hopes up.

I am going to note that I did not edit the first part enough and I'm going to fix that, I promise.

The going is kind of slow atm, but I am working on it still, as soon as I am happy with how it's turning out (As in I'm going to give it an actual written plot rather than piecing it up in my head whenever I think about it.) and maybe after I've got the third chapter written as well, I'll give this a big update, I'm not counting on anyone reading this story any time soon anyway, but I'm leaving it up because I'm trying to grow as a person.

Thank you for sitting through me talking about nothing, btw, I appreciate you and everything you're doing.

Love ya! Stay safe, stay happy, you are appreciated!

\- Wuluf

(P.S. Comments are encouraged when I eventually upload another part. I don't bite, I promise!)

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! Now, you probably shouldn't expect a second chapter to this any time soon, I write at a rather slow pace and have been struggling with motivation for a while now. I typically pre-write a whole story before I publish, but I got tired of waiting lol. I'm also 6000% sure I wrote something with more plot-related issues than The-Book-That-Shall-Not-Be-Named. Comments are appreciated, as are you being here!
> 
> Stay safe and happy, love yourself, you're valued! <3
> 
> \- Wuluf


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